Grant McCann keeps Peterborough United afloat with free-kick stunner

A superb Grant McCann free-kick was enough to give relegation-battlers Peterborough United all three points on Saturday evening against fellow strugglers Sheffield Wednesday.

The second-half strike was the only difference between the two sides on the day and it gives the Posh a great chance for survival in the Championship after a very poor start to the season that saw them go seven games without a single point.

Before the game, Posh knew that only a win would do as they saw Barnsley pick up three-vital points at home to Hull City and in-front of a packed out London Road, it was a Grant McCann special that secured the vital points.

Sheffield Wednesday started the game on the front foot after a Steve Howard header was saved well by Bobby Olejnik, but once the game got into the swing of things, it was the hosts that saw most of the possession.

The first real chance for Peterborough came when Lee Tomlin saw his shot parried by veteran goalkeeper Chris Kirkland and after the rebound fell back to Tomlin, he passed the ball across to in-form striker Dwight Gayle, who saw his shot eventually cleared on the line by defender, Miguel Llera.

Despite having over 70% of the possession in the opening stages, Posh couldn't get behind the Wednesday defence and the first-half ended with both sides deadlocked at 0-0.

Early in the second half, it was Gayle yet again that came close to scoring, but his shot was once again blocked off the line by Miguel Llera and the hosts appeal for hand-ball was quickly rejected. TV replays showed that the ball hit the defender in the chest.

Just as the hour-mark passed, Peterborough won a free-kick after loanee midfielder Alex Pritchard was bundled over by centre-back, Anthony Gardner.

Grant McCann has a lot of history scoring from free-kicks, his most famous one coming at Old Trafford when the Posh beat Huddersfield 3-0 to get promoted to the Championship and this free-kick could be just as important come the end of the season.

The Northern Ireland international smashed the ball over the wall and saw the ball smash against the post and nestle in the back of the net much to the delight of the home fans.

After the goal, chances were at a premium as neither side really had golden chances to add another, but the one goal was all that Peterborough needed to climb out of the relegation zone.

The Posh will now go into the last game of the season knowing that their survival fight is in their own hands as they travel to Crystal Palace.

The win means that there are seven teams fighting it out for survival, with two of them going down to League One.

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DISCLAIMER

This article has been written by a member of the GiveMeSport Writing Academy and does not represent the views of
GiveMeSport.com or SportsNewMedia. The views and opinions expressed are solely that of the author credited at the top of this article.
GiveMeSport.com and SportsNewMedia do not take any responsibility for the content of its contributors.

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